Team Herald 

CANACONA: It is nothing new to witness foreign tourists wearing gloves to clean the roadsides in Palolem and Agonda of plastic and other waste. But what has surprised everyone is the role of a few expats residing in Canacona and other tourists lending a helping hand be it money, time and experience to rid tonnes of garbage dumped at the lone treatment plant at Dumane, Canacona. 

Leading the way to clear the dump is Saskia Gall, a British national, staying at one of the exotic alluring beaches of Canacona and Alex Carpenter, the founder of  ‘The Tribe’ together with their expat friends decided that one day they would take the lead to clear the garbage dumped at Dumane for the last few years. 

"With relentless efforts and taking other NGOs and Canacona municipality onboard, we were able to clear over 100 tonnes of mixed waste, which was baled and sent to Hubli in trucks to be used as a fuel for a cement manufacturing facility”, said Saskia.

In their mammoth effort, they were helped by environmentalist Clinton Vaz, Goenkar NGO, Vrecycle and the Canacona municipality. 

Lauding the efforts of the expats, Jack Fernandes, president of ‘Goenkar’, said these foreigners are messengers of the age old adage "cleanliness is next to godliness" and hopefully we will listen and follow the ambassadors of clean and green environment.”